My Performance: Johanna Konta
Johanna Konta reflects on her performance at the Miami Open.
Johanna Konta reflects on her performance at the Miami Open.
ZHUHAI, China – The WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai has announced today the appointment of José Miguel Garcia from Madrid, Spain as Tournament Director for the year‐end WTA event held at the Hengqin Tennis Center Zhuhai.
Garcia brings 15 years of experience at professional tennis events, mainly at the Mutua Madrid Open where he remains a key member of the completion, operations and player services team.
“I am very excited by this new project,” Garcia said during his first visit to Zhuhai. “The facilities at the Hengqin Tennis Center Zhuhai are extremely impressive and I look forward to using my experiences from other major events I have been involved with and by working with the WTA and Zhuhai based event teams to continue to grow the event as it enters into its third year.”
In cooperation with the Mutua Madrid Open, Garcia will travel regularly to Zhuhai to coordinate the organization of the event with teams from the event operator and promoter Zhuhai Huafa Sports Operations Management Co. Ltd, the licensing owner APG and the WTA.
“We are very happy to have José Miguel Garcia as Tournament Director for the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, his international experience will be extremely valuable to the event and contribute to the development of the tournament,” said Peter Lv, Executive Director of Zhuhai Huafa Sports Operations Management Co. Ltd.
“We strongly believe José Miguel will be a great asset for the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai and will provide the support needed to take the event to the next level. We are proud to have him appointed as the Tournament Director for the event and look forward to seeing the event continue to grow successfully,” said Fabrice Chouquet, APG Chief Operating Officer.
The WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, established in 2015, features 11 of the top ranked singles players along with one wild card and four of the top ranked doubles teams and two team wild cards.
The $USD 2.28 million event to be held between October 31st – November 5th at the Hengqin Tennis Center Zhuhai, also sees up to 700 WTA ranking points awarded to the winner. Venus Williams won the title in 2015 and Petra Kvitova in 2016.
Check out Venus Williams’s shot of the day against Angelique Kerber at the Miami Open.
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Day 9’s stat of the day from the Miami Open, presented with SAP.
If Johanna Konta is to keep up her meteoric rise and pull off what would be a hugely popular home victory at Wimbledon this year, she would be following in some distinguished footsteps, emulating Wimbledon’s last female British champion, Virginia Wade.
This summer marks the 40th anniversary of that famous day on which Wade defeated Betty Stove to lift the most coveted of titles back in 1977 on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee.
Now a resident of New York, Wade reflects in an interview with the Daily Mail on the day that elevated her to tennis superstardom.
Having battled past Chris Evert in a tough three-set semifinal, Wade found herself matched against a seemingly easier opponent in the final and yet many people forget that she lost the opening set to Stove after a nervy start.
“I knew I had to find my courage after the first set,” said Wade. “But I was always aware that Betty was not sure how to beat me. I had fought through some tough matches against her before and won, and I knew I had left some scar tissue on her. I was fine from when I went 3-0 up in the second set.”
From then on, Wade dominated the final set and, with Stove’s spirit broken, she romped home to secure a famous 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 victory.
“I couldn’t hear what the Queen was saying because there was such a commotion and the crowd were singing ‘For she’s a jolly good fellow’, I’ve still no idea why. That night I went with a large group of family and friends to a lovely Indian restaurant opposite Harrods.
“Then there was the Champions’ Dinner at the Savoy. It was the first year that they abandoned the dance between the champions, so I never got to dance with Bjorn (Borg).”
Wade was only days short of her 32nd birthday when she won Wimbledon in 1977 so Johanna Konta knows she certainly has her best years ahead of her. Especially considering that she plays Venus Williams in the semifinal of the Miami Open, the American rediscovering some of her very best tennis at 36 years of age, 11 years Konta’s senior.
Highlights from the quarterfinal clash between Johanna Konta and Simona Halep.
WTA Insider | Relive a day of stunning upsets at the Miami Open, where Johanna Konta and Venus Williams surprised top seeds Simona Halep and Angelique Kerber on Stadium court.
Highlights from the quarterfinal clash between Venus Williams and Angelique Kerber.
MIAMI, FL, USA – Johanna Konta became the first British woman to reach the Miami Open semifinals after coming back from a set down to oust No.3 seed Simona Halep.
Putting an injury-plagued start of the season behind her, Halep came into the matchup after winning consecutive matches for the first time all season here in Miami. And in the quarterfinals, the Romanian even saved match point in her late-night thriller against Sam Stosur.
But she couldn’t pull off the escape once again against Konta, falling 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-2 after a rollercoaster two hours and thirty minutes.
.@JoKonta wins a mammoth tiebreak 9-7!
Into a decider… #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/TWpn1gbFnG
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
The Brit had to overcome a slow start against Halep, though, as the Romanian came out of the gates firing and would take an early break in the opening set. Loose unforced errors during the initial exchanges cost Konta, and Halep didn’t allow her to settle into a rhythm with her changes of pace.
Dropping the first set only galvanized Konta, as the Brit notched an emphatic break to love and a 3-0 lead. But that’s when things got complicated, and Halep dodged a pair of break points and leveled the match a few games later.
She served for the match at 5-4, and was two points away from victory when Konta denied her, keeping her serve under pressure and rewarded with loose errors.
Into a tiebreaker, Halep once again saw her lead erased as Konta came roaring back from 5-3 down and edged through 9-7.
.@JoKonta91 advances to @MiamiOpen Semifinals!
Battles past Halep 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-2! pic.twitter.com/nm3n99u6s8
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
With the wind in her sails Konta grabbed the lead once again but this time didn’t allow Halep back in. She broke Halep twice to reel off the final five games and complete the comeback.
“It was a really tough match, very high level,” Halep told WTA Insider after the match. “I was so close to winning, I was two points away in the tiebreak, but she played very strong and deserved to win today.
“I’m happy to be here after the break that I had. I’m just disappointed I lost a match I had in my hands. But my confidence is there, the game is there – I just need to play matches.”
Konta be rewarded with a clash against the winner between World No.1 Angelique Kerber and Venus Williams for a chance to go even further and win a spot into her second career Premier Mandatory final.
Should she reach the final, she’s projected to return to the Top 10 after the WTA rankings are released on Monday.
“Whoever I’m playing, I’ll have a battle on my hands that’s for sure,” Konta said. “I’ve played Venus and Angie a few times. They’re going to have a tough battle tonight, and I’m looking forward to playing either of them. Either of them will be a great opportunity for different reasons.”